“Gave my heart an engagement ring,
While I love Billy Idol’s rough and tumble style and his anthems like “Rebel Yell” have to rank among some of my all-time favorite 80’s tunes, I loved when he took a minute in 1987 to slow things down. “Sweet Sixteen” is such a delicate song, one that took most Idol fans by surprise. It showed that this hardcore rocker had a soft side that was worth exploring.
This song was actually inspired by a true story. A man named Edward Leedskalnin was dumped by his fiancée Agnes Scuffs the day before they were to be married. He built Coral Castle, a monument complete with furniture made of coral, in Homestead, Florida hoping to win her back, but she still did not want to marry him. His nickname for her was Sweet Sixteen. Here’s a nugget for you, if you travel to Coral Castle even now you will see some of the furniture that was created, including the coral rocking chair mentioned in the lyrics of Idol’s tribute to it.
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